Information equipment, control system and control method

ABSTRACT

Information equipment 300 is controlled by a HEMS 200 and located in a consumer&#39;s facility 10. The information equipment 300 comprises a storage unit 300 configured to store a variable indicating a route type of an operational instruction on the information equipment 300.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates to information equipment located in aconsumer's facility, and a control system and a control method forcontrolling information equipment.

BACKGROUND ART

In recent years, a control system (EMS: energy management system)controlling a plurality of pieces of information equipment has beendrawn attention (for example, Patent Literature 1). In such a controlsystem, a control apparatus controlling the plurality of pieces of theinformation equipment is installed.

As a control apparatus, there is an HEMS (home energy management system)located in a house, a BEMS (building energy management system) locatedin a building, an FEMS (factory energy management system) located in afactory, an SEMS (store energy management system) located in a store, orthe like.

As the plurality of pieces of the information equipment, there are adistributed power apparatus, a power storage apparatus, a thermalstorage apparatus, and a load. The distributed power apparatus is anapparatus generating power by using natural energy, such as solar light,wind power, or geothermal power, like a solar cell or the like.Otherwise, the distributed power apparatus is an apparatus generatingpower by using fuel gas like a fuel cell such as an SOFC (solid oxidefuel cell). The power storage apparatus is an apparatus storing powerlike a secondary battery or the like. The thermal storage apparatus isan apparatus converting power to heat and storing the heat like a waterheater or the like. The load is a refrigerator, an illuminator, an airconditioner, a TV, or the like.

CITATION LIST Patent Literature

Patent Literature 1: Japanese application publication No. 2010-128810

SUMMARY OF INVENTION

With the spread of operation terminals such as a smartphone, there is ademand for performing remote control of the information equipment byusing the operation terminal at an outside of the consumer's facility(house, building, factory, store, or the like) where the informationequipment is located. However, in the treatment of such remote control,problems in safety need to be considered.

In this regard, the present invention was made to solve the aboveproblem, and an object thereof is to provide information equipment, acontrol system and a control method having a function of performingremote control of information equipment while considering problems insafety.

Information equipment according to first aspect is controlled by acontrol apparatus and located in a consumer's facility. Informationequipment comprises a storage unit configured to store a variableindicating a route type of an operational instruction on the informationequipment.

In the first aspect, information equipment comprises a notifying unitconfigured to notify, when the variable stored in the storage unit ischanged, the control apparatus of an operation route identifierindicating the changed variable.

In the first aspect, information equipment comprises a notifying unitconfigured to notify, according to reception of a setting commandincluding the operational instruction on the information equipment, thecontrol apparatus of an operation route identifier indicating the routetype of the operational instruction included in the setting command.

In the first aspect, information equipment comprises a notifying unitconfigured to notify, according to reception of a request command forrequesting transmission of information indicating a state of theinformation equipment, notifies the control apparatus of an operationroute identifier indicating the route type of the operationalinstruction received before the request command is received.

In the first aspect, the variable indicating the route type includes avariable indicating an inside-consumer's facility operation in which anoperation is input to the information equipment from an operationapparatus connected to a narrow area network installed in the consumer'sfacility and a variable indicating an outside-consumer's facilityoperation in which an operation is input to the information equipmentfrom an operation apparatus connected to a wide area network differentfrom the narrow area network.

In the first aspect, the variable indicating the inside-consumer'sfacility operation includes a variable indicating a direction operationin which an operation is directly input to the information equipmentwithout intervention of another equipment and a variable indicating anindirection operation in which an operation is indirectly input to theinformation equipment via another equipment.

A control system according to second aspect comprises informationequipment that is located in a consumer's facility and a controlapparatus that controls the information equipment. The informationequipment includes a storage unit configured to store a variableindicating a route type of an operational instruction on the informationequipment.

A control method according to third aspect used in a control systemincluding information equipment that is located in a consumer's facilityand a control apparatus that controls the information equipment. Thecontrol method comprises a step of storing, by the informationequipment, a variable indicating a route type of an operationalinstruction on the information equipment.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an energy management system 100according to a first embodiment.

FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a consumer's facility 10 according tothe first embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating an application scene according to thefirst embodiment.

FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating a HEMS 200 according to the firstembodiment.

FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating information equipment 300 according tothe first embodiment.

FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating an exemplary message format accordingto the first embodiment.

FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating an exemplary message format accordingto the first embodiment.

FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating an exemplary message format accordingto the first embodiment.

FIG. 9 is a diagram illustrating an exemplary message format accordingto the first embodiment.

FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating an exemplary message format accordingto the first embodiment.

FIG. 11 is a sequence diagram illustrating a control method according tothe first embodiment.

FIG. 12 is a sequence diagram illustrating a control method according tothe first embodiment.

FIG. 13 is a sequence diagram illustrating a control method according tothe first embodiment.

DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS

Hereinafter, a control system and a control method according to anexemplary embodiment of the present invention will be described withreference to the appended drawings. In the following drawings, the sameor similar parts are denoted by the same or similar reference numerals.

There are schematic diagrams, and it should be noted that a ratio ofeach dimension or the like is different from an actual one. Thus, aspecific dimension or the like has to be determined in view of thefollowing description. Of course, portions that differ in a relation ofdimensions or a ratio are included in the drawings.

Overview of Embodiment

Information equipment according to embodiment is controlled by a controlapparatus and located in a consumer's facility. The informationequipment comprises a storage unit configured to store a variableindicating a route type of an operational instruction on the informationequipment.

In the embodiment, since the variable indicating the route type of theoperational instruction on the information equipment is stored in theinformation equipment, it is possible to control the informationequipment using the variable indicating the route type. Thus, it ispossible to remotely control the information equipment while consideringproblems in safety.

First Embodiment

(Energy Management System)

Hereinafter, an energy measurement system according to a firstembodiment will be described. FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating theenergy management system 100 according to the first embodiment.

As illustrated in FIG. 1, the energy management system 100 is configuredto include a consumer's facility 10, a CEMS 20, a substation 30, a smartserver 40, and a power plant 50. The consumer's facility 10, the CEMS20, the substation 30, and the smart server 40 are connected to eachother via a wide area network 60.

The consumer's facility 10 is an example of the consumer's facilityincluding at least one of a distributed power apparatus, a power storageapparatus, a thermal storage apparatus, and a load. The distributedpower apparatus, the power storage apparatus, the thermal storageapparatus, and the load are an example of the information equipmentcontrolled by the control apparatus.

The distributed power apparatus is an apparatus generating power byusing natural energy such as solar light, wind power, or geothermalpower like a solar cell or the like. Otherwise, the distributed powerapparatus is an apparatus generating power by using fuel gas like a fuelcell. The power storage apparatus is an apparatus storing power, forexample, like a secondary battery or the like. The thermal storageapparatus is an apparatus converting power to heat and storing the heat,for example, like a water heater or the like. The load is arefrigerator, an illuminator, an air conditioner, a TV, or the like.

The consumer's facility 10 may be, for example, a detached residence,may be a housing complex such as an apartment house, may be a commercialfacility such as a building, may be a factory, or may be a store.

In the first embodiment, a consumer's facility group 10A and aconsumer's facility group 10B are configured with a plurality of theconsumer's facilities 10. The consumer's facility group 10A and theconsumer's facility group 10B are classified, for example, according toa geographical area.

The CEMS 20 controls connection between the plurality of the consumer'sfacilities 10 and a power grid. Since the CEMS 20 manages the pluralityof the consumer's facilities 10, the CEMS is sometimes referred to as aCEMS (cluster energy management system). More specifically, during apower failure or the like, the CEMS 20 disconnects the connectionbetween the plurality of the consumer's facilities 10 and the powergrid. On the other hand, at the restoration of power or the like, theCEMS 20 connects the plurality of the consumer's facilities 10 and thepower grid.

In the first embodiment, a CEMS 20A and a CEMS 20B are installed. TheCEMS 20A controls, for example, the connection between the consumer'sfacilities 10 included in the consumer's facility group 10A and thepower grid. The CEMS 20B controls, for example, the connection betweenthe consumer's facilities 10 included in the consumer's facility group10B and the power grid.

The substation 30 supplies power to the plurality of the consumer'sfacilities 10 through a distribution line 31. More specifically, thesubstation 30 steps down a voltage supplied from the power plant 50.

In the first embodiment, a substation 30A and a substation 30B areinstalled. The substation 30A supplies power, for example, to theconsumer's facilities 10 included in the consumer's facility group 10Athrough a distribution line 31A. The substation 30B supplies power, forexample, to the consumer's facilities 10 included in the consumer'sfacility group 10B through a distribution line 31B.

The smart server 40 manages the plurality of the CEMSs 20 (herein, theCEMS 20A and the CEMS 20B). The smart server 40 manages the plurality ofthe substations 30 (herein, the substation 30A and the substation 30B).In other words, the smart server 40 collectively manages the consumer'sfacilities 10 included in the consumer's facility group 10A and theconsumer's facility group 10B. The smart server 40 has a function ofbalancing, for example, the power supplied to the consumer's facilitygroup 10A and the power supplied to the consumer's facility group 10B.

The power plant 50 performs power generation using firepower, windpower, hydropower, nuclear power, or the like. The power plant 50supplies power to the plurality of the substations 30 (herein, thesubstation 30A and the substation 30B) through a power transmission line51.

The wide area network 60 is connected to each apparatus via a signalline. The wide area network 60 is, for example, the Internet, a mobilephone network, or the like.

(Consumer's Facility)

Hereinafter, the consumer's facility according to the first embodimentwill be described. FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating details of theconsumer's facility 10 according to the first embodiment.

As illustrated in FIG. 2, the consumer's facility 10 is configured toinclude a distribution board 110, a load 120, a PV unit 130, a storagebattery unit 140, a fuel cell unit 150, a hot-water storage unit 160,and an HEMS 200.

The distribution board 110 is connected to the distribution line 31(grid). The distribution board 110 is connected to the load 120, the PVunit 130, the storage battery unit 140, and the fuel cell unit 150through a power line.

The distribution board 110 may include a measurement unit measuring thepower supplied from the distribution line 31 (grid). The measurementunit may measure power consumption of the load 120.

The load 120 is an apparatus consuming the power supplied through thepower line. For example, the load 120 includes an apparatus such as arefrigerator, an illuminator, an air conditioner, or a TV. The load 120may include a single apparatus or a plurality of apparatuses.

The PV unit 130 includes a PV 131 and a PCS 132. The PV 131 is anexample of the distributed power apparatus and is an apparatusperforming power generation according to reception of solar light. ThePV 131 outputs a DC power as a result of the power generation. An amountof power generation of the PV 131 changes according to an amount ofsolar radiation irradiated on the PV 131. The PCS 132 is an apparatus(power conditioning system) converting the DC power output from the PV131 to an AC power. The PCS 132 outputs the AC power to the distributionboard 110 through the power line.

The PV unit 130 may include a pyrheliometer measuring the amount ofsolar radiation irradiated on the PV 131.

The PV unit 130 is controlled by an MPPT (maximum power point tracking)method. More specifically, the PV unit 130 optimizes an operating point(point determined by a voltage value and a power value at the operatingpoint or point determined by a voltage value and a current value at theoperating point) of the PV 131.

The storage battery unit 140 is configured to include a storage battery141 and a PCS 142. The storage battery 141 is an apparatus storingpower. The PCS 142 is an apparatus (power conditioning system)converting a DC power output from the storage battery 141 to an ACpower.

The fuel cell unit 150 is configured to include a fuel cell 151 and aPCS 152. The fuel cell 151 is an example of the distributed powerapparatus and is an apparatus generating power by using a fuel gas. ThePCS 152 is an apparatus (power conditioning system) converting a DCpower output from the fuel cell 151 to an AC power.

The fuel cell unit 150 operates according to load-following control.More specifically, the fuel cell unit 150 controls the fuel cell 151 sothat the power output from the fuel cell 151 follows the powerconsumption of the load 120.

The hot-water storage unit 160 is an example of the thermal storageapparatus converting power to heat and storing the heat. Morespecifically, the hot-water storage unit 160 includes a hot-waterstorage tank to warm water supplied from the hot-water storage tank byexhaust heat generated from operation (power generation) of the fuelcell 151. More specifically, the hot-water storage unit 160 warms thewater supplied from the hot-water storage tank and returns the warmwater to the hot-water storage tank.

The HEMS 200 is a control apparatus managing the information equipment(load, distributed power apparatus, power storage apparatus or thermalstorage apparatus) located in the consumer's facility 10.

In the first embodiment, the HEMS 200 is connected to the load 120, thePV unit 130, the storage battery unit 140, the fuel cell unit 150, andthe hot-water storage unit 160 through a signal line and controls theload 120, the PV unit 130, the storage battery unit 140, the fuel cellunit 150, and the hot-water storage unit 160. The HEMS 200 may controlpower consumption of the load 120 by controlling an operation mode ofthe load 120. The signal line connecting the HEMS 200 and theinformation equipment may be in a wireless or may be in a wired manner.

The HEMS 200 is connected to various servers via the wide area network60. The various servers store, for example, information (hereinafter,referred to as energy fee information) such as a purchase unit price ofthe power supplied from the grid, a sale unit price of the powersupplied from the grid, and a purchase unit price of the fuel gas.

In addition, the various servers store, for example, information(hereinafter, referred to as energy consumption forecasting information)for forecasting power consumption of the load 120. The energyconsumption forecasting information may be generated, for example, basedon actual records of the previous power consumption of the load 120.Alternatively, the energy consumption forecasting information may be amodel of the power consumption of the load 120.

The various servers store, for example, information (hereinafter,referred to as PV power generation amount forecast information) forforecasting the amount of power generation of the PV 131. The PV powergeneration forecast information may be a forecast value of the amount ofsolar radiation irradiated on the PV 131. Alternatively, the PV powergeneration forecast information may be weather forecast, season,daylight hours, or the like.

(Applicable Scene)

Hereinafter, an applicable scene of the first embodiment will bedescribed. FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating the applicable scene of thefirst embodiment.

As illustrated in FIG. 3, a system according to the applicable scene ofthe first embodiment is configured to include an HEMS 200, informationequipment 300, a router 400, an operation terminal 500, and a server600.

The HEMS 200 is an example of the control apparatus managing theinformation equipment 300 located in the consumer's facility 10. TheHEMS 200 is connected to the router 400 in a wired or wireless mannerand communicates with the information equipment 300, the operationterminal 500, and the server 600 through the router 400.

The information equipment 300 is controlled by the HEMS 200 like theload 120, the PV unit 130, the storage battery unit 140, the fuel cellunit 150, the hot-water storage unit 160, or the like.

The router 400 constitutes a narrow area network 70 installed in theconsumer's facility 10. The router 400 may constitute a wireless LAN ora wired LAN as the narrow area network 70. FIG. 3 exemplarilyillustrates a case where the HEMS 200 is connected to the router 400 ina wired manner and the information equipment 300 and the operationterminal 500 are connected to the router 400 in a wireless manner.However, the HEMS 200 may be connected to the router 400 in a wirelessmanner, and the information equipment 300 and the operation terminal 500may be connected to the router 400 in a wired manner.

The operation terminal 500 is an operation terminal transmitting anoperational instruction for the information equipment 300. The operationterminal 500 may be an operation terminal (for example, a remotecontroller or an operation button installed in the information equipment300) directly inputting operation into the information equipment 300without use the router 400 or the HEMS 200. Alternatively, the operationterminal 500 may be an operation terminal (for example, a mobileterminal connected to the router 400 in a wireless manner or a personalcomputer connected to the router 400 in a wired manner) connected to thenarrow area network 70. The operation terminal connected the narrow areanetwork 70 indirectly inputs operation to the information equipment 300through the router 400 and the HEMS 200. In addition, the operationterminal 500 may be an operation terminal (for example, a mobileterminal capable of accessing the server 600 or a personal computercapable of accessing the server 600) connected to a wide area network 60different from the narrow area network 70. The operation terminalconnected to the wide area network 60 is not limited to an apparatuscarried by a user, but it may be a server (for example, a server managedby a power company) installed on the wide area network 60. As theoperational instruction transmitted from such a server, there isconsidered a demand response or the like.

In FIG. 3, as the operation terminal 500, an operation terminal 500Adirectly inputting operation into the information equipment 300, anoperation terminal 500B connected to the narrow area network 70, and anoperation terminal 500C connected to the wide area network 60 areexemplarily illustrated. In a case where the operational instruction isa demand response or the like, it should be noted that the operationterminal 500C may be considered to be same as the server 600. Forexample, the server 600 may be the above-described smart server 40, andthe demand response issued from the smart server 40 may be anoperational instruction.

The server 600 is a server which is installed on the wide area network60 and receives an operational instruction for the information equipment300 from the operation terminal 500C connected to the wide area network60. However, it should be noted that the operation terminal 500C is notalways connected to the server 600.

Herein, in terms of security, it is not preferable that session betweenthe HEMS 200 connected to the narrow area network 70 installed in theconsumer's facility 10 and the server 600 be always retained. Ingeneral, in order to protect an apparatus connected to the narrow areanetwork 70, a firewall is installed between the wide area network 60 andthe narrow area network 70. Therefore, access from the server 600 to theHEMS 200 cannot be arbitrarily performed. From such a point of view, itis preferable that the server 600 transmit the operational instructionreceived from the operation terminal 500C to the HEMS 200 according to aquery periodically executed by the HEMS 200 with respect to the server600.

However, the embodiment is not limited thereto. For example, portreleasing is intentionally performed on the firewall, so that the server600 may transmit to the HEMS 200 the operational instruction receivedfrom the operation terminal 500C at an arbitrary timing.

(Control Apparatus)

Hereinafter, the control apparatus according to the first embodimentwill be described. FIG. 4 is a block diagram illustrating the HEMS 200according to the first embodiment.

As illustrated in FIG. 4, the HEMS 200 is configured to include areception unit 210, a transmission unit 220, and a control unit 230.

The reception unit 210 receives various signals from the apparatusesconnected through the signal line (wireless or wired). For example, thereception unit 210 receives information indicating an amount of powergeneration of the PV 131 from the PV unit 130. The reception unit 210receives information indicating an amount of electricity storage of thestorage battery 141 from the storage battery unit 140. The receptionunit 210 receives information indicating an amount of power generationof the fuel cell 151 from the fuel cell unit 150. The reception unit 210receives information indicating an amount of hot water storage of thehot-water storage unit 160 from the hot-water storage unit 160.

In a case where communication between the HEMS 200 and the informationequipment 300 is performed in an ECHONET Lite protocol, the receptionunit 210 receives a message (SET response command, GET response command,and INFO command) in accordance with the ECHONET Lite protocol from eachapparatus. The SET response command is a response command with respectto a setting command (SET command) including an operational instructionfor the information equipment 300 and includes a set response indicatinga result of the setting (refer to FIG. 8 described later). The GETresponse command is a response command with respect to a request command(GET command) demanding to transmit information indicating a state ofthe information equipment 300 and includes demanded information (demandresponse) (refer to FIG. 9 described later). The INFO command is acommand which the information equipment 300 spontaneously transmitsindependently of a command from the HEMS 200 with respect to theinformation equipment 300 and includes the state information indicatingthe state of the information equipment 300 (refer to FIG. 10 describedlater).

Herein, the reception unit 210 may receive the energy fee information,the energy consumption forecasting information, and the PV powergeneration amount forecast information from various servers via the widearea network 60. However, the energy fee information, the energyconsumption forecasting information, and the PV power generation amountforecast information may be stored in the HEMS 200 in advance.

In the first embodiment, the reception unit 210 receives the operationalinstruction (inside-consumer's-facility operation) from the operationterminal 500B. In addition, the reception unit 210 receives theoperational instruction (outside-consumer's-facility operation) receivedfrom the operation terminal 500C from the server 600.

The transmission unit 220 transmits various signals to apparatusesconnected through the signal line. For example, the transmission unit220 transmits signals for controlling the load 120, the PV unit 130, thestorage battery unit 140, the fuel cell unit 150 and the hot-waterstorage unit 160 to the respective apparatuses.

In a case where communication between the HEMS 200 and the informationequipment 300 is performed in an ECHONET Lite protocol, the transmissionunit 220 transmits a message (SET command and GET command) in accordancewith the ECHONET Lite protocol to each apparatus. The SET command is asetting command including an operational instruction for the informationequipment 300 (refer to FIG. 6 or 7 described later). The GET command isa request command requesting to transmit information indicating a stateof the information equipment 300.

In the first embodiment, the transmission unit 220 transmits a query ofthe operational instruction received from the operation terminal 500C tothe server 600.

In the first embodiment, the transmission unit 220 constitutes atransmission unit which transmits an operational instruction for theinformation equipment 300 to the information equipment 300. The routetype of the operational instruction for the information equipment 300includes inside-consumer's-facility operation in which the operationterminal 500B connected to the narrow area network 70 inputs operationsto the information equipment 300 and outside-consumer's-facilityoperation in which the operation terminal 500C connected to the widearea network 60 inputs operations to the information equipment 300.

Herein, in a case where the route type is the inside-consumer's-facilityoperation, the transmission unit 220 transmits an operationalinstruction in a first format. On the other hand, in a case where theroute type is the outside-consumer's-facility operation, thetransmission unit 220 transmits an operational instruction in a secondformat different from the first format.

In a case where communication between the HEMS 200 and the informationequipment 300 is performed in an ECHONET Lite protocol, as illustratedin FIG. 6, as the operational instruction in the first format, anexisting message (SET command) in an ECHONET Lite protocol can be used.On the other hand, the operational instruction in the second format is anewly defined message (special SET command) apart from the existingmessage in the ECHONET Lite protocol. For example, the SET command(second format) includes operation-route specifying informationindicating that the route type is outside-consumer's-facility operation.In the example illustrated in FIG. 6, the SET command (first format) isan existing message which does not include operation-route specifyinginformation.

Otherwise, as illustrated in FIG. 7, the first format and the secondformat may be distinguished from each other by the operation-routespecifying information (for example, 1-bit flag) indicating the routetype. The SET command (first format) includes operation-route specifyinginformation indicating that the route type is inside-consumer's-facilityoperation, and the SET command (second format) includes operation-routespecifying information indicating that the route type isoutside-consumer's-facility operation.

Returning to FIG. 4, the control unit 230 controls operations of theHEMS 200. The control unit 230 controls the load 120, the PV unit 130,the storage battery unit 140, the fuel cell unit 150, and the hot-waterstorage unit 160.

In the first embodiment, the control unit 230 constitutes adetermination unit which determines a route type of the operationalinstruction for the information equipment 300. More specifically, in acase where the operational instruction does not pass through the server600 installed on the wide area network 60, the control unit 230determines that the route type is the inside-consumer's-facilityoperation. On the other hand, in a case where the operationalinstruction passes through the server 600 installed on the wide areanetwork 60, the control unit 230 determines that the route type is theoutside-consumer's-facility operation.

As described above, in a case where the route type is theinside-consumer's-facility operation, the operational instruction istransmitted from the operation terminal 500B to the HEMS 200 through therouter 400. Therefore, if the control unit 230 identifies the IP addressof the transmission source of the operational instruction, the controlunit 230 can determine that the operational instruction does not passthrough the server 600. On the other hand, in a case where the routetype is the outside-consumer's-facility operation, the operationalinstruction which the server 600 receives from the operation terminal500C is transmitted from the server 600 to the HEMS 200. Therefore, ifthe control unit 230 identifies the IP address of the transmissionsource of the operational instruction, the control unit 230 candetermine that the operational instruction passes through the server600.

Namely, the control unit 230 is considered to determine the route typeof the operational instruction according to whether or not theoperational instruction is based on an instruction passing through thewide area network 60. In a case where the operational instruction isbased on an instruction passing through the wide area network 60, thecontrol unit 230 determines that the route type isoutside-consumer's-facility operation. In a case where the operationalinstruction is not based on an instruction passing through the wide areanetwork 60, the control unit 230 determines that the route type isinside-consumer's-facility operation.

Herein, the instruction passing through the wide area network 60 may bean instruction transmitted from the operation terminal 500C directly tothe HEMS 200 or may be an instruction transmitted from the operationterminal 500C through the server 600 to the HEMS 200. Otherwise, theinstruction passing through the wide area network 60 may be aninstruction transmitted from the above-described smart server 40 to theHEMS 200. The control unit 230 may also transmit an appropriateoperational instruction to the information equipment 300 according tothe instruction passing through the wide area network 60.

As described above, in a case where the route type isinside-consumer's-facility operation, the transmission unit 220transmits the operational instruction in the first format. In a casewhere the route type is outside-consumer's-facility operation, thetransmission unit 220 transmits the operational instruction in thesecond format. If the above-described determination method of thecontrol unit 230 is taken into consideration, the transmission unit 220may be considered to transmit the operational instruction in differentformats according to whether or not the operational instruction passesthrough the server 600 located outside the consumer's facility 10.Otherwise, the transmission unit 220 may be considered to transmit theoperational instruction in different formats according to whether or notthe operational instruction is based on an instruction passing thoughthe wide area network 60.

(Information Equipment)

Information equipment according to the first embodiment will bedescribed below. FIG. 5 describes the information equipment 300according to the first embodiment.

As illustrated in FIG. 5, the information equipment 300 is configured toinclude a reception unit 310, a transmission unit 320, a storage unit330, and a control unit 340.

The reception unit 310 receives various signals from the apparatusesconnected through the signal line (wireless or wired). Morespecifically, the reception unit 310 receives operational instructionsfrom the operation terminal 500A, the operation terminal 500B, and theoperation terminal 500C.

In a case where communication between the HEMS 200 and the informationequipment 300 is performed in an ECHONET Lite protocol, the receptionunit 310 receives a message (SET command and GET command) in accordancewith the ECHONET Lite protocol from the HEMS 200.

In the first embodiment, in a case where the route type isinside-consumer's-facility operation, the reception unit 310 receivesthe operational instruction in the first format from the HEMS 200. Onthe other hand, in a case where the route type isoutside-consumer's-facility operation, the reception unit 310 receivesthe operational instruction in the second format different from thefirst format from the HEMS 200.

The transmission unit 320 transmits various signals to apparatusesconnected through the signal line (wireless or wired).

In a case where communication between the HEMS 200 and the informationequipment 300 is performed in an ECHONET Lite protocol, the transmissionunit 320 transmits a message (SET response command, GET responsecommand, and INFO command) in accordance with the ECHONET Lite protocolto the HEMS 200.

In the first embodiment, the transmission unit 320 constitutes anotifying unit which notifies the HEMS 200 of an operational instructionindicating the route type of the operational instruction for theinformation equipment.

More specifically, according to the reception of the setting commandincluding an operational instruction for the information equipment 300,the transmission unit 320 notifies the HEMS 200 of an operation-routeidentifier indicating a route type of the operational instructionincluded in the setting command. For example, as illustrated in FIG. 8,according to the reception of the SET command, the transmission unit 320transmits to the HEMS 200 a SET response command including theoperation-route identifier indicating the route type of the operationalinstruction included in the SET command.

Otherwise, according to the reception of the request command requestingto transmit information indicating a state of the information equipment300, the transmission unit 320 notifies the HEMS 200 of anoperation-route identifier indicating a route type of the operationalinstruction received before the reception of the request command. Forexample, as illustrated in FIG. 9, according to the reception of the GETcommand, the transmission unit 320 transmits to the HEMS 200 a GETresponse command including the operation-route identifier indicating theroute type of the operational instruction received before the receptionof the GET command. Namely, the transmission unit 320 transmits to theHEMS 200 the GET response command including the operation-routeidentifier indicating which operation route the current operation isreceived from.

Otherwise, in a case where the variable stored in the storage unit 330is changed, the transmission unit 320 notifies the HEMS 200 of anoperation-route identifier indicating a changed variable. For example,as illustrated in FIG. 10, the transmission unit 320 transmits to theHEMS 200 an INFO command including the operation-route identifierindicating the changed variable.

The storage unit 330 stores variables indicating the route type of theoperational instruction for the information equipment 300.

As described above, the variables indicating the route type of theoperational instruction for the information equipment 300 include avariable indicating inside-consumer's-facility operation where theoperation terminal 500B connected to the narrow area network 70installed in the consumer's facility 10 input operation to theinformation equipment 300 and a variable indicatingoutside-consumer's-facility operation where the operation terminal 500Cconnected to the wide area network 60 different from the narrow areanetwork 70 inputs operation to the information equipment 300.

In addition, the variable indicating the inside-consumer's-facilityoperation may include a variable indicating direct operation whereoperation is directly input to the information equipment 300 withoutpassing through a different apparatus (for example, HEMS 200 or router400) and a variable indicating indirect operation where operation isindirectly input to the information equipment 300 through a differentapparatus (for example, HEMS 200 or router 400).

The direct operation may be operation of operation buttons installed inthe information equipment 300 or may be operation using a remotecontroller associated with the information equipment 300. The indirectoperation is an operation using the operation terminal 500B connected tothe narrow area network 70 installed in the consumer's facility 10.

The control unit 340 controls operations of the information equipment300. More specifically, the control unit 340 controls the operations ofthe information equipment 300 according to an operational instruction.

In the first embodiment, the control unit 340 determines an operationalinstruction route type. The control unit 340 can specify theinside-consumer's-facility operation and the outside-consumer's-facilityoperation according to a difference between the formats of the messagesincluding the operational instructions. In addition, since the controlunit 340 can specify the direct operation, the control unit 340 canspecify operation other than the direct operation. Therefore, thecontrol unit 340 can specify that the inside-consumer's-facilityoperation is direct operation and can also specify that theinside-consumer's-facility operation is indirect operation.

(Control Method)

Hereinafter, a control method according to the first embodiment will bedescribed. FIGS. 11 to 13 are flowcharts illustrating the control methodaccording to the first embodiment. In FIGS. 11 to 13, a case wherecommunication between the HEMS 200 and the information equipment 300 isperformed in accordance with the ECHONET Lite protocol is exemplified.

Firstly, the case (direct operation) where an operational instruction istransmitted from the operation terminal 500A to the informationequipment 300 will be described with reference to FIG. 11.

As illustrated in FIG. 11, in step 10, the operation terminal 500Atransmits the operational instruction for the information equipment 300to the information equipment 300.

In step 20, the information equipment 300 sets a variable indicating theroute type of the operational instruction for the information equipment300 (that is, a variable indicating the direct operation). Namely, theinformation equipment 300 changes the variable stored in the storageunit 330. The information equipment 300 executes an operationcorresponding to the operational instruction.

In step 30, the information equipment 300 transmits an INFO commandincluding the operation-route identifier indicating the changed variableto the HEMS 200 (refer to FIG. 10).

Secondly, the case (inside-consumer's-facility operation/indirectoperation) where an operational instruction is transmitted from theoperation terminal 500B to the information equipment 300 will bedescribed with reference to FIG. 12.

As illustrated in FIG. 12, in step 110 and step 120, the operationterminal 500B transmits the operational instruction for the informationequipment 300 to the HEMS 200 through the router 400.

In step 130, the HEMS 200 determines the route type of the operationalinstruction for the information equipment 300. More specifically, sincethe operational instruction does not pass through the server 600, theHEMS 200 determines that the route type is theinside-consumer's-facility operation.

In step 140 and step 150, the HEMS 200 transmits the operationalinstruction for the information equipment 300 to the informationequipment 300 through the router 400. More specifically, the HEMS 200transmits a SET command (first format) including the operationalinstruction for the information equipment 300 to the informationequipment 300 (refer to FIG. 6 or 7).

In step 160, the information equipment 300 sets a variable indicatingthe route type of the operational instruction for the informationequipment 300 (that is, a variable indicating theinside-consumer's-facility operation). Namely, the information equipment300 changes the variable stored in the storage unit 330. The informationequipment 300 executes an operation corresponding to the operationalinstruction.

In step 170, the information equipment 300 transmits a SET responsecommand including an operation-route identifier indicating the routetype of the operational instruction included in the SET command (firstformat) to the HEMS 200 (refer to FIG. 8).

Thirdly, the case (outside-consumer's-facility operation) where anoperational instruction is transmitted from the operation terminal 500Cto the information equipment 300 will be described with reference toFIG. 13.

As illustrated in FIG. 13, in step 210A and step 210B, the HEMS 200transmits a query of an operational instruction or the like to theserver 600 through the router 400. It should be noted that the HEMS 200periodically executes the query of the operational instruction or thelike.

In step 220, the operation terminal 500C transmits the operationalinstruction for the information equipment 300 to the server 600.

In step 230 and step 240, according to the query received from the HEMS200, the server 600 transmits the operational instruction for theinformation equipment 300 to the HEMS 200 through the router 400.

In step 250, the HEMS 200 determines a route type of the operationalinstruction for the information equipment 300. More specifically, sincethe operational instruction passes through the server 600, the HEMS 200determines that the route type is the outside-consumer's-facilityoperation.

In step 260 and step 270, the HEMS 200 transmits the operationalinstruction for the information equipment 300 to the informationequipment 300 through the router 400. More specifically, the HEMS 200transmits a SET command (second format) including the operationalinstruction for the information equipment 300 to the informationequipment 300 (refer to FIG. 6 or 7).

In step 280, the information equipment 300 sets a variable indicatingthe route type of the operational instruction for the informationequipment 300 (that is, a variable indicating theoutside-consumer's-facility operation). Namely, the informationequipment 300 changes the variable stored in the storage unit 330. Theinformation equipment 300 executes an operation corresponding to theoperational instruction.

In step 290, the information equipment 300 transmits a SET responsecommand including an operation-route identifier indicating the routetype of the operational instruction included in the SET command (secondformat) to the HEMS 200 (refer to FIG. 8).

Herein, although not shown in the flowcharts illustrated in FIGS. 11 to13, the information equipment 300 may transmit to the HEMS 200 the GETresponse command including the operation-route identifier indicating theroute type of the operational instruction received before the receptionof the GET command according to the reception of the GET command (referto FIG. 9).

As described above, since the variable indicating the route type of theoperational instruction on the information equipment 300 is stored inthe information equipment 300, it is possible to control the informationequipment 300 using the variable indicating the route type. Accordingly,it is possible to perform remote control of the information equipment300 while considering problems in safety.

Other Embodiments

While the invention has been described with reference to the aboveembodiments, it should not be understood that the description and thedrawings as a portion of the disclosure limit the invention. It will beapparent to the ordinarily skilled in the art that various alternativeembodiments, examples, and operational techniques are available from thedisclosure.

In the embodiments, a case where the communication between the HEMS 200and the information equipment 300 was performed in the ECHONET Liteprotocol was mainly described. However, the embodiments are not limitedthereto. The communication between the HEMS 200 and the informationequipment 300 may be in accordance with other protocols.

In the embodiments, three types of inside-consumer's-facility operation(direct operation), inside-consumer's-facility operation (indirectoperation), and outside-consumer's-facility operation were exemplifiedas operational instruction route types. However, the embodiments are notlimited thereto. Two types of inside-consumer's-facility operation andoutside-consumer's-facility operation may be used as the operationalinstruction route types. Otherwise, the route type of the operationalinstruction may be the direct operation and operation other than thedirect operation.

In the embodiments, the information equipment 300 specifies theinside-consumer's-facility operation and the outside-consumer's-facilityoperation according to a difference between the formats of the messagesincluding the operational instructions. However, the embodiments are notlimited thereto. The information equipment 300 may specify theinside-consumer's-facility operation and the outside-consumer's-facilityoperation by identifying IP addresses of transmission sources.

In the embodiments, as a name of the information indicating the routetype of the operational instruction for the information equipment 300,the “operation-route specifying information” and the “operation-routeidentifier” are used, but the embodiments are not limited thereto. Forexample, the SET command, the SET response command, the GET responsecommand, and the INFO command may include information indicating theroute type of the operational instruction for the information equipment300, and the formats of the information (information indicating theroute type) included in the messages may be different from each other.

In the embodiments, a case where the control apparatus is the HEMS 200was exemplified. However, the embodiments are not limited thereto. Thecontrol apparatus may be installed in the CEMS 20 or may be installed inthe smart server 40. Otherwise, the control apparatus may be installedin a BEMS (building energy management system), may be installed in anFEMS (factory energy management system), or may be installed in an SEMS(store energy management system).

In the embodiment, the consumer's facility 10 is configured to include aload 120, a PV unit 130, a storage battery unit 140, a fuel cell unit150, and a hot-water storage unit 160. However, the consumer's facility10 may include any of the load 120, the PV unit 130, the storage batteryunit 140, the fuel cell unit 150, and the hot-water storage unit 160.

Note that Japanese Patent Application No. 2013-81676 (filed on Apr. 9,2013) is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY

As described heretofore, according to the present invention, it ispossible to provide information equipment, a control system and acontrol method capable of performing remote control of informationequipment while considering problems in safety.

1. Information equipment that is controlled by a control apparatus andlocated in a consumer's facility, comprising: a storage unit configuredto store a variable indicating a route type of an operationalinstruction on the information equipment.
 2. The information equipmentaccording to claim 1, further comprising, a notifying unit configured tonotify, when the variable stored in the storage unit is changed, thecontrol apparatus of an operation route identifier indicating thechanged variable.
 3. The information equipment according to claim 1,further comprising, a notifying unit configured to notify, according toreception of a setting command including the operational instruction onthe information equipment, the control apparatus of an operation routeidentifier indicating the route type of the operational instructionincluded in the setting command.
 4. The information equipment accordingto claim 1, further comprising, a notifying unit configured to notify,according to reception of a request command for requesting transmissionof information indicating a state of the information equipment, notifiesthe control apparatus of an operation route identifier indicating theroute type of the operational instruction received before the requestcommand is received.
 5. The information equipment according to claim 1,wherein the variable indicating the route type includes a variableindicating an inside-consumer's facility operation in which an operationis input to the information equipment from an operation apparatusconnected to a narrow area network installed in the consumer's facilityand a variable indicating an outside-consumer's facility operation inwhich an operation is input to the information equipment from anoperation apparatus connected to a wide area network different from thenarrow area network.
 6. The information equipment according to claim 5,wherein the variable indicating the inside-consumer's facility operationincludes a variable indicating a direction operation in which anoperation is directly input to the information equipment withoutintervention of another equipment and a variable indicating anindirection operation in which an operation is indirectly input to theinformation equipment via another equipment.
 7. A control system,comprising: information equipment that is located in a consumer'sfacility; and a control apparatus configured to control the informationequipment, wherein the information equipment includes a storage unitconfigured to store a variable indicating a route type of an operationalinstruction on the information equipment.
 8. A control method used in acontrol system including information equipment that is located in aconsumer's facility and a control apparatus that controls theinformation equipment, the control method comprising: a step of storing,by the information equipment, a variable indicating a route type of anoperational instruction on the information equipment.